


My Special Day

by SaltiSnacks



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Cussing Voltron Style, Flashbacks, Flashbacks in flashbacks, Light Angst, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Sheith endgame, Shiro (Voltron) Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Shiro's P.o.V., Voltron: Legendary Defender Season/Series 08 Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-21
Updated: 2019-03-21
Packaged: 2019-11-26 16:05:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18182744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaltiSnacks/pseuds/SaltiSnacks
Summary: It's the first of March. It's a special day for Shiro.Right?





	My Special Day

**Author's Note:**

> *I do not own VLD.
> 
> **This is waaaaay late, but I read somewhere that all of March is Shiro's birthday. So...
> 
> ***I debated not finishing this. But, two people voted yes to me continuing it on Twitter. This is for you both and for my friends.
> 
> ****I'll eventually be able to type his name, but I might put Cuttlefish on "accident."

When he woke up that morning, it was with a sense of happiness and excitement. Tossing off the covers, he ran his hands through his hair in an attempt to flatten the bed-head that was undoubtedly sticking up everywhere.

He wondered what his husband had planned for today since he didn't do anything the previous day. Celebrating on either day didn’t matter to Shiro, as his true birthday was on leap day every four Earth years.

He crept into the living room expecting some kind of surprise. Homemade breakfast. Maybe balloons. A present wrapped on the kitchen table.

Something. _Anything._

He found nothing. Not even a card.

He sank into the brand new couch as his husband bustled around the house to get ready for work. “I thought you had the day off?”

“No. Why would I take today off? There's supposed to be several intergalactic meetings today, so it’s all communications personnel on deck.” He looked at him quizzically before pulling on his coat and grabbing the car keys. Another purchase out of his pension in addition to the house and furniture.

He internally deflated. “No reason. Who all is it?”

“You don’t work for the Garrison or Coalition anymore. It's classified.” He crossed his arms.

That left a mark and he barely held his flinch. “Oh. Okay. Have a good day at work.”

His husband went out the door to the attached garage. The car door slammed, the engine revved, and the mechanical door raised. Just like that his husband was gone.

Nothing said. Nothing done. He didn’t even get a peck on the cheek.

His thoughts wandered.

Two weeks ago had been a blur. Admittedly not all of it good. Getting married on Valentine’s Day was probably cliché, but at the time it had made sense. Even if it had been a Thursday.

A strange feeling crept over his skin. The honeymoon phase was already over, even if they hadn't gone on one due to Shiro's need to restructure at the Garrison before shutting his office door for the last time.

What had once been uncomplicated and safe was becoming uneasy and stilted. In just two weeks, an entirely different man was surfacing. One he didn’t recognize at all.

The events from two nights ago flashed through his memory.

_“No! Keith! Its not me! I’m in Black! Keith! Black! No, Kuron, stop!” He sat up straight in the bed, half expecting his arm to be glowing with a purple sword as images of a blistering cheek still hung in his mind._

_“For goodness sakes, Takashi!” He leapt from the bed and grabbed his pillow._

_He was still shaking. Expecting comfort, but none came as he stormed for the bedroom door. “Wait. It was a nightmare. I can't… I can't help it.”_

_“I have work tomorrow and need to sleep. Unlike some people who don’t have to work anymore. You’ve had a nightmare every night. If I had known it was this bad…” The door slammed shut, leaving the room barely lit by the blue glow from his prosthetic._

_He buried his face in his flesh hand, a sense of disbelief settling as his trauma was completely ignored. Instead, it was thrown back in his face. Left alone to face the still lurking shadows haunting him._

His memory wandered further into the past.

_“Shiro, my boy, you've only known him for five months. Are you sure this is what you want? Think more about this.” Sam solemnly shook his head while patting him on the shoulder._

_“You're what?!” Pidge dropped the impact drill in her hand, barely missing her foot as it crashed to the floor with a loud clatter on the concrete._

_“Oh. Really? Uh…Congratulations, I guess.” Hunk wouldn't meet his gaze through the holopad screen. “Sorry. I have a meeting to get to. Later, Shiro.” He blinked in confusion as the screen went blank._

_“Do you even know him,_ _Shiro? Does he know half about what we know about you? You’re being stupid and not thinking.” Lance crossed his arms in the recliner through the screen._

_“Oh. Well, then. Not what I was expecting, but…I'll be there for you on your joyous day.” Coran twisted his mustache while his brows furrowed._

_Keith never answered his calls. Only responding with a simple “Okay.” to his request to be his best man._

_“He's my best friend. I'm glad he found his happiness.” Keith choked, but collected himself quickly. “Congratulations, Takashi.” He raised his glass in toast at the end of his speech, but he barely noticed as his name, his first name, in that soft low voice reverberated in his head._

_“I love you.” He remembered the shockwave through the clone's system, briefly shattering Haggar's mind control. The memory becoming his own after taking possession of the empty shell._

_No. No. Not today. Don’t think about that today. He just meant as a brother. He couldn't have meant anything else. Today I married to a good man._

_“Where did Keith go?” He looked around the room in confusion a few minutes later._

_“He…left, Shiro.” Lance looked at the ground. Pidge dug her toe in the carpet._

_“He what?”_

_“He's gone, Shiro. We probably won’t see him for a while. He has a few deep space relief missions coming up with the Blades.” Hunk rubbed at his tuxedo sleeve awkwardly while not meeting his eyes. “Their set to launch in a varga.”_

_“He's leaving? He didn’t say anything. Not to me. Why didn't he say anything?” The news shocked him deep in his core, sending a trill of ice down his spine._

_“He wanted you happy, Shiro. That's all he's ever wanted. The best friend he loves so much to be happy. And after all he did…almost did for you.” Matt was staring at him, arms crossed. Shiro was confused at the angry look on his face. “You screwed up badly today, Bub.”_

_He turned and walked away leaving Shiro stunned as the rest followed him solemnly. Their happiness for his wedding deflating faster than a popped balloon._

_Hunk's voice floated back, thinking he was out of earshot, “He may never get over this.”_

_Pidge shook her head, “I know. Matt, what did Keith almost do?”_

_“I’ll explain later.”_

_He sank, stupefied, into the nearest chair and buried his face in his hand after they walked out the hall door._

_He's gone. He's gone. He just…left without a word. Why?_

_The past months blurred through his mind and he felt like crying. He had distanced himself, trying to protect his heart. For what his heart yearned to be the truth._

_But, Keith never said anything more. Granted, he didn’t either, but being called a “brother" sets an uncrossable line in the sand._

_Is Matt right? Did I just make a big mistake? Was I all wrong?_

Shaking his head, he jerked himself back into the present. “Stop it. I chose a good man. I know I did. He must have something planned for later. That's it. Later.”

_But why hasn’t Keith contacted me?_

*****

The day dragged on.

He waited.

All day he waited while tidying up the already pristine living room and kitchen. He washed a half load of laundry. He watched a few new sitcoms. Browsed Hunk's new website for galactic cuisine fusion recipes which he'd never be able to cook in this lifetime. They did look interesting and delicious, though.

Returned a few messages to those who wished him a happy birthday - the MFE pilots, Iverson, and Pidge.

Dialed and quickly hung up a spur of the moment, out of loneliness video call. Losing his nerve faster than he had gained it.

There wasn’t any surprise delivery of flowers.  
Nothing in the mail. No dropped off packages.

Slowly losing hope. Feeling a dull ache that was changing into anger.

_There was no way he forgot._

_Right?_

“Later. He has something planned for later. I know it.”

Clicking to the news had him dropping the remote in shock.

“…agreed to assist in our cause of aiding worlds that have been devastated by the former Galra empire. We will therefore be joining the Earth Garrison and Voltron Coalition as of today. We look forward to working with you. May I present our representative, Acxa, who would like to say a few words.” He waved her forward.

He didn’t catch a word she said, or Veronica's beaming smile, as he was too focused on the man just to her left. Somehow his hair had grown even longer in just two weeks. The new uniform wrapped around him had a black and red half-cape off one shoulder and a new symbol he didn't recognize – a Mamora blade placed against the symbol of Voltron and the Coalition. A new blade handle showed from behind his back.

He still vividly recalled the day he lost his original blade, the remnant of his mother before she left Earth. He had frozen in shock as Zethrid had choked Keith on that planet filled with toxic fumes. Acxa had come to his rescue, not him.

_“As many times as it takes.”_

_"We found each other."_

He gagged. Some hero he was. Some best friend he was.

 _No, I started pushing them away before they even fell back to Earth in the lions. I was too afraid to lose them to the war. I had already lost Adam twice over. I couldn’t lose them, too. But, we lost her_ anyway.

_I haven't once checked on Lance or Coran since that day except for the reunions. Oh, quiznak._

Some friend he was. He had pushed everyone important way.

_What have you become Takahashi Shirogane? Forgoing your dream? Did I really have to give up everything?_

_But, he wanted to stay on Earth. He begged me to stay. He wanted to be near his sister. The stars never called him like they did me. So…I retired._

_What have you become?_

*****

The opening garage signaled his return. He met him at the door. “Welcome home.”

“Sorry.” He brushed past him with a shake of his head. “I need to rest for a minute. Keeping all those lines straight and translation modules running smoothly ran me mentally ragged. Plus, sleep was a little…” He sat on the couch and put his sandy dirty boots on the coffee table with a sigh. The almost brand new table he had just cleaned earlier.

His eye twitched as his spine straightened, and he dared him to continue. It came out tense and tightlipped, “Was _what?”_

His eyes were shut so he didn’t see the warning look on Shiro's face. “You kicked me awake last night. I slept on the couch...again. You’re sleeping there tonight.”

 _He's kicking_ me _out of the bed? A bed_ I _paid for?_

“You know…I thought your friend was going to punch me today. I heard he was a disciplinary case, but sheesh.”

His hackles rose even higher. “Who?”

“What was his name again? Kevin? Kulbert? That paladin friend of yours that was your best man.” He waved his hand in the air, eyes still closed.

His teeth grit and ground at his words. “His name is Keith.”

_He doesn’t even know my best friend’s name?_

“Oh. Yea. That’s it.”

“Why would he almost punch you?”

“He asked if I was doing anything special later. When I said no, he practically jumped over the table. That other friend of yours…Hank? Stopped him.

“Hunk.”

_He has…nothing planned? Is this a joke? Leading me off the scent?_

“Was Larry there, too? Kathy?”

“The blue and green ones? Yea. He's going to grow some of the food for the new joint effort with Kevin's organization. And she's tight lipped about her new project. Says it’s still in the development stages.”

His teeth ground harder. “It's Lance, Katie, and Keith.”

_You were on board with them…on the bridge with them for months and you don’t know their names?! The paladins of Voltron?! They were in our wedding party!_

“Why did you say Larry and Kathy then? Whatever. I need a shower. I’m still not used to all this dust.” He stood up and swatted his pants off, sending it floating around through the air. Specks flew everywhere on the vacuumed carpet.

Not noticing how rigid Shiro was standing. How furious he was. Not even looking at him once since he walked through the door as he went for the hallway closet. “What day is today?”

“The first of March. I stared at that so much on my screen for hours, it’s practically fused to my retinas. Those meetings are so boring.”

 _I would have loved to be there. I could have_ been _there. But I gave that up for_ you  _instead of captaining the Atlas._

“And why would this day be special according to _Keith?”_

He finally looked at him after grabbing a towel and blinked in confusion. “The Blades joining the Coalition? Why that would be special for _me_ is a weird question. Back in a few.”

_Did this conversation just…really happen? Did I fall asleep watching television? He has to be joking? He has to be. Maybe he's getting cleaned up to surprise me with a dinner date?_

Still internally seething, he banged the door off the wall and stalked out into the yard.

The setting sun over a distant butte sent his mood spiraling even darker. Precious memories flooded of racing and laughter.

Joy and companionship.

“What if?”

_What if I had went to meet him that night instead of doing last minute paperwork?_

 

**Author's Note:**

> I will soothe my friends' hearts through the fan fiction I write them. Love you, dearies! 😘


End file.
